Research Seminar: Representations of Coercion and Resistance in African American Slave, Jim Crow, and Neo-slave Narratives

Description

Within the context of slavery, the Jim Crow version of slavery, and the continuing racism in the U.S., African American literature bears witness to centuries of oppression, coercion, and exploitation; at the same time it documents great tenacity and resistance and the capacity to overcome these forms of subjugation. This course will examine the relation between the socio-political structures of historical domination and the literary manifestations of the effects of oppression and modes of resistance. Along with historical texts, we will read literary texts ranging from Jacobs' and Douglass' autobiographies to novels by Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, and Jesmyn Ward. The course will focus primarliy on forms of resistance and overcoming. Course requirements: one oral report and one 18-20 page research paper.

Please read the paragraph about English 190 on page 2 of the instructions area of this Announcement of Classes for more details about enrolling in or wait-listing for this course.